Islam Makhachev: record, style and what is next

Image: Head of the Republic of Dagestan, CC BY 3.0

Islam Makhachev is the reigning UFC welterweight champion and the number one fighter in the promotion's men's pound-for-pound rankings. As of 30 September 2026 his record is 29 wins and 1 loss, according to the UFC athlete page, and the UFC rankings were last updated on 29 September.

He is 34, stands 5ft 10in with a 70.5 inch reach, and comes from Dagestan in Russia. His last fight was a unanimous decision over Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330 in Philadelphia on 15 August 2026 (the UFC athlete page lists it as 16 August, the date in UTC). That win was his 17th in a row in the UFC, which took him past the previous record of 16 held by Anderson Silva.

Of his 29 wins, 13 came by submission, 5 by knockout or TKO and 11 by decision, per the career breakdown on Wikipedia. He has held two UFC titles: the lightweight belt, which he vacated in May 2025, and the welterweight belt he won in November 2025.

Makhachev wins by taking control of where the fight happens. His approach is built on chain wrestling, positional control and steady pressure, with a ground game that leans on chokes from the back and the arm-triangle. Thirteen submission wins from 29 fights tells you what he is hunting.

The base comes from combat sambo. He won the Russian national title at 74 kg in 2014 and 2016 and the 2016 World Combat Sambo Championship. He started with taekwondo at seven, and that background still shows in his kicking: the left high kick that dropped Garry in round two at UFC 330 came out of the clinch, and his 2023 knockout of Alexander Volkanovski was a head kick too.

His striking is the support act, not the main event. It makes opponents worry about punches and kicks while he closes the distance and changes levels. Once he gets a body triangle or a back position, fights tend to end in one of two ways: a choke, or a long stretch of control that wins rounds on the scorecards.

The UFC 330 fight also showed where he can be troubled. Garry defended a lot of takedown attempts, out-landed him in round three and bloodied his face in the middle rounds, as reported by Low Kick MMA. Makhachev looked tired at that point, then settled the fight with a fifth-round takedown and a body triangle.

Makhachev was born on 27 October 1991 in Makhachkala and grew up in the village of Burshi. He trained under Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, the father of Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Khabib and Javier Mendez of American Kickboxing Academy are his coaches today.

He made his UFC debut on 23 May 2015 at UFC 187 with a submission of Leo Kuntz. His only defeat came that October at UFC 192, when Adriano Martins knocked him out. He has not lost since.

The lightweight title came at UFC 280 on 22 October 2022, where he beat Charles Oliveira by arm-triangle choke for the vacant belt. He then defended it four times: a unanimous decision over Volkanovski at UFC 284 on 12 February 2023, a head-kick knockout of Volkanovski at UFC 294 on 21 October 2023, a fifth-round brabo choke of Dustin Poirier at UFC 302 on 1 June 2024, and a first-round brabo choke of Renato Moicano at UFC 311 on 18 January 2025.

After relinquishing the lightweight title in May 2025, he moved up to 170 pounds. Ilia Topuria then beat Oliveira for the vacant lightweight belt, and the two champions have never met. Our Ilia Topuria profile covers the other side of that story.

Makhachev's last two fights were both five-round title fights at welterweight. At UFC 322 at Madison Square Garden on 15 November 2025 he beat Jack Della Maddalena to win the belt, with all three judges scoring it 50-45.

At UFC 330 on 15 August 2026 he made his first welterweight defence against Machado Garry, winning 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47. He controlled the first round with grappling, dropped Garry with a left high kick in the second, and took over again in the fifth. The UFC's own results report says he became only the fifth fighter to make successful title defences in two divisions, a claim we have not checked against a second source.

Before that he had finished Moicano in January 2025 with a first-round brabo choke at 4:05. Across his last three fights he has two decisions and one submission, so the welterweight run has been about control rather than quick finishes.

No fight is booked for Makhachev as of 30 September 2026, and the UFC athlete page lists no upcoming bout. The next big card on the calendar, UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi on 24 October, is headlined by Petr Yan against Merab Dvalishvili, not by the welterweight champion.

The UFC rankings put Garry, Carlos Prates, Michael Morales, Jack Della Maddalena and Gabriel Bonfim as the top five welterweight contenders. Fight Matrix names Prates as the most likely next challenger and Morales, who is 19-0, as another contender. It also lists Topuria as a long shot for a move up in weight. None of this is confirmed by the UFC.

What a win would mean is easy to state: another defence would extend a streak that is already the longest in UFC history. A loss would be his first since October 2015.

• UFC: Islam Makhachev athlete profile
• UFC: Rankings
• Wikipedia: Islam Makhachev
• Wikipedia: UFC 322
• Wikipedia: UFC 330
• ESPN: UFC 330 results and analysis
• UFC: UFC 330 Makhachev vs Machado Garry results
• Low Kick MMA: Makhachev gets bloodied but seals decision win at UFC 330
• Fight Matrix: What is next for Islam Makhachev

What is Islam Makhachev's record?

Islam Makhachev is 29-1 as of 30 September 2026, per the UFC athlete page. Thirteen wins came by submission, five by knockout or TKO and eleven by decision. His only loss was a knockout by Adriano Martins at UFC 192 in October 2015, and he has won 17 UFC fights in a row since.

Is Islam Makhachev a champion?

Yes, he is the UFC welterweight champion. He won the belt by unanimous decision over Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322 on 15 November 2025 and defended it against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330 on 15 August 2026. He previously held the lightweight title and vacated it in May 2025.

What is Islam Makhachev's fighting style?

Makhachev is a wrestler and grappler with a combat sambo background. He relies on chain wrestling, positional control and pressure, and he finishes with chokes such as the arm-triangle and brabo. Thirteen of his 29 wins are submissions, and his kicks off the clinch have also produced knockdowns.

Who is Islam Makhachev's next opponent?

No opponent is confirmed as of 30 September 2026. The UFC athlete page lists no upcoming fight. Carlos Prates and Michael Morales are among the welterweight contenders mentioned by outlets such as Fight Matrix, but those are suggestions, not bookings.

Who trains Islam Makhachev?

Makhachev was coached by Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov early in his career. Today his coaches include Khabib Nurmagomedov and Javier Mendez, and his teams include American Kickboxing Academy and Eagles MMA, according to his Wikipedia profile. He started in taekwondo at seven before moving to wrestling and mixed martial arts.